SW17LS

I too think its profoundly short sighted for Lexus to make buyers choose between the sport package car, and their luxury options. No other carmaker forces their customers to make that choice.

With that said, if I were buying an IS I would get the F Sport despite the features I would loose. To me the IS isn't a great "luxury cruiser", a purchase would be all about sport. So...the F Sport is the no brainer IMHO. On my GS I opted for the luxury package over the F Sport because I feel it can really be both. I don't think the IS can.

If I were worried about luxury features and feel, I wouldn't buy an IS. Or...maybe I would just buy a 335 M Sport and have it all...

rominl

iTrader: (4)

i think what flipside was referring to is a one time adjustment on the dampening when you turn it to the S+ mode. the shocks themselves are active that's for sure, so when you drive the shock setup continuously adjust itself. however it doesn't really go out of range the way it does when you turn the **** to S+ where it gets into a different "range". i think per lexus definition, having an active shock doesn't make it avs. throughout all the years, from my understanding, avs are always lexus cars with direct adjustable (rotation at the strut tower top) dampening setup

the is250 fsport i have test driven, it definitely performs well and differently on different surfaces, however there is no S+ mode and the dampening difference is not as drastic. i am going to test drive the is350 fsport soon but i believe it has the S+ mode and it adjust the dampening range more noticeably. just like the gs350 fsport when you flip it from S to S+, the dampening difference is very noticeable

that's also why when you get on lexus.com and look under IS

IS350 Fsport is the only one that gets "Exclusive Adaptive Variable Suspension".

terryt

Ok so in australia the 350-f-sport is the better deal than the standard model
we have far fewer options to tick, with 3 levels of equipment models to pick from
baseluxusry, f-sport, sports luxury

the top of the range sports luxury model can be equipped with same toys minus the f-sport specific addons
it is approx A$8K more than f-sport

only the hybrid gets LED headlights as option, the rest get HID.

Aus design rule require all HIDS to come washers as well, so they are std across the range

350 f-sport comes with the following as std on top of the base model
AVS
VGRS
ML
NAV
memory seats
dimming mirror
auto dipping side mirrors
USB exclusive to f-sport called flame blue locally
f-sport trim (wheels, scuff plates, pedals, dash, etc)

full leather heated and cooled seats across the entire range is standard, no nuluxe

the only options are moonroof in one pack and moonroof, PCS, ACC LD in the other pack
we don't get ot mix and match like the yanks.

so you dont give up anything going for the f-sport
it is the better (value) option to go for in australia

AndyL

hi rominl,

when you test drive the is350 F Sport, try to compare different modes by staying with VDIM and then turning VDIM off completely (with the car engine still running, hold the TRAC buttom until you see the light on the dash persistently)

You should see some drastic difference when VDIM is off.

rominl

iTrader: (4)

i am definitely going to try that. i tried to take off trac on the is250 fsport as well, but since that car is so underpowered it didn't really make things much different (or more / less exciting)

i am looking forward to try and review that on the is350. i guess i just need to be careful and not head towards the wall!

flipside909

Exactly. Thanks Henry!

The shocks in the 2014 Lexus IS are made my Hitachi formerly Tokico. Tokico has been used in the IS since the first generation. Only the 2012 and newer Lexus IS F has changed from Tokico to Sachs dampers.

If any of you guys ever seen the movement of the factory AVS on the GS and IS, the adjustment **** on the top of the shock only moves 90 degrees from Normal to Sport S+. On aftermarket setups including Tokico, Bilstein and other adjustable shock systems, the adjustment is a full 360 turn on the ****. As for the "active" feature of the shock itself, all good quality shock absorbers have a valve which automatically opens and closes when the frequency of shock increases or decreases. The Monroe Sensatrac shock is a good example of this. It does not require an electronic actuator to change dampening, but it does have an internal valve which will adjust to various road conditions. The Lexus AVS takes the shock dampening a step further by stiffening the shock dampening past the standard dampening rate for increased stability and feel.

Here's a good explanation of how shocks and valve dampening work:

flipside909

Did you know the traction control "pedal dance" from the 06 GS & IS still works on the 2014 IS. This is another way to disable the system aside from holding down the TRAC OFF button.

http://www.automobilemag.com/multime...30_video/1580/

AndyL

Oh I didn't know that. In fact, I thought it only works for IS starting in 07. Anyway, that is a much more complicated process. I prefer the simpler way and you can disable the system entirely and quickly even when you are waiting for a traffic light.

Joe Z

iTrader: (10)

Pedal dance and TRAC button (extended press & hold) do different things..
Pedal dance does more...


~ Joe Z

machmike

I'm going F sport IS350. Purely emotional. I just like the look better. Now I need to find a RWD here in Colorado.. AWD is worthless when there are really only 10-13 days a year you would actually need it down out of the mountains.

For ultra bad snow days i'll just use my Xterra.

Nebula Grey with Black. I may have to fly out to CA to get one.

magne

I guess if the f-sport package is a good deal varies from country to country.
In norway, the fully loaded f-sport and luxury package cost the same. A very small difference in price at 1-2% of the total price.
The luxury package has rear sunshade keycard key, and cross trafick alert as far as equipment the f-sport does not have.
The f-sport has the different front bumper, the lfa-cluster, the sport seats, the sport+ driving mode, f-sport colors USB and withe, and the f-sport rims that the luxury version does not have.

Worth noting that the f-sport fully loaded here has real leather seats, not nulux.
Ventilated seats. Fog lights. and all other options that it does not have in the US.
However we only get the 300h, not 250 or 350.

But here, the F-sport is very much worth the money.

SW17LS

I had the same thought when I got my 4GS, I have a Jeep and don't need AWD in the Lexus. You will have to special order or leave your region to get a RWD IS. I ultimately did AWD out of ease, and also for resale. I had been shopping for a CPO 2010 LS before I got the GS and the few RWD ones I found were considerably less money...people here want the AWD.

dbs600

Can those with F-Sports AND Blind Spot Monitoring Side View Mirrors please confirm whether or not your side view mirrors "dip" when going in Reverse?

I don't know how I'm going to deal with curb rash if they don't!?

rominl

iTrader: (4)

the is350 f sport with BSM i just drove for a week, the mirrors do not tilt down when in reverse

the is250 fsport without BSM that i drove before, the mirrors also do not tilt down

(unless i was doing something wrong)

isthree50

iTrader: (1)

No the side mirrors do not tilt down then you put the vehicle in reverse when you get the f sport and bsm